1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a chair for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae and a method for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae by means of the chair, which can be not only used easily and comfortably but also utilized in treating an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae of the user. By repeatedly using the chair and the method of the invention, gaps between the user""s spinal vertebrae are repeatedly enlarged and contracted by themselves, so that not only pain due to compression of paraspinal nerves can be naturally reduced and tension of paraspinal muscles can be relieved, but also a misalignment of the spinal vertebrae can be corrected, that is, a herniation of intervertebral disk can be prevented and treated.
2. Description of the Prior Art
A spine is a pillar of a human body and contains a spinal marrow connected to a human brain so as to control and regulate all the functions of the human body. The spine supports the weight of the human body and protects the spinal marrow, which is an organ for transferring orders from the brain to each part of the human body.
Therefore, it is essential for an individual in keeping himself or herself in good health to maintain twenty-four spinal vertebrae protecting such spinal marrow as described above, a pelvis, and a skull in their correct positions. The spine consisting of the twenty-four vertebrae connected in series also functions as an intermediate bridge for connecting the pelvis and the skull with each other.
When the spinal vertebrae are in their original correct positions, the spinal marrow and the vertebral nerves can work without any hindrance. On the contrary, when the spinal vertebrae are out of their original positions, the vertebral nerves, which has to pass between the spinal vertebrae, starts to be compressed and thereby various nervous systems starts to be disabled. Such hindrances in the nervous systems deteriorate functions of related organs of the human body and their immunological competence, which thereby may cause a severe disease.
A severe disease may be caused by various reasons such as wrong postures, wrong habit of living, improper exercise, stress, accident, and heredity. Among those reasons, a misalignment of the spinal vertebrae due to such reasons as severe accident and heredity may make an individual to be physically handicapped. However, even a slight misalignment of the spinal vertebrae may cause various diseases.
A human spine is shaped like a large letter xe2x80x9cSxe2x80x9d in a view from the lateral side, which functions as a great leaf spring capable of well distributing the weight of the human body. In a view of the front side, the human spine extends in a straight line without any curve, so as to maintain the balance of the human body well.
When such a curve and a straight line by the spine are distorted, the weight of the human body may press the human body itself as formidable stress. Further, the distortion of the original lines by the spine may slightly displace the spinal vertebrae from their original positions, and then the muscles rigidified for supporting the displaced spinal vertebrae and the weight of the human body press the vertebral nerves and the paravertebral nerves, thereby causing greater pain, which applies a stronger pressure on the nerves again, resulting in a vicious circle.
In the meantime, a large number of individuals suffer from chronic back pain. Many of these individuals acquire this problem due to prolonged exposure to incorrect posture associated with occupational activities. That is, individuals such as students and office workers spend most of their time with being seated in chairs, and loads to their spines are increased by about one and a half times when they are seated in chairs in comparison with the case where they stand. Further, since a weight of an individual""s upper body is delivered to the individual""s spine and pelvis when the individual has a seated posture, muscular stress is concentrated on the individual""s spine, pelvis, and muscles surrounding the spine and pelvis to thereby provide the individual with fatigue and pain, when the individual is seated in a chair for a long time. Moreover, the individual may get a so-called spine disk disease, namely a herniation of intervertebral disk, when the individual takes an improper posture for a long time due to his or her wrong sitting habit or a wrongly designed chair.
In general, when an individual has a misalignment of the spine, he or she is subjected to an oriental treatment utilizing an oriental therapeutic needle, a physical treatment, or a finger-pressure therapy, in which the individual""s muscles near the misaligned vertebrae are pressed by a curer""s fingers.
Further, among existing systems for correcting a patient""s spinal misalignment there is a system utilizing a method, in which the patient is hung upside down so that the patient""s spinal vertebrae are elongated, thereby being correctly aligned. In this system, although the patient""s paraspinal muscles or tissues are elongated, the elongation of the very spinal vertebrae is small and it is difficult to maintain the patient""s physiological curvature, an S-shaped curvature, so that it is difficult to achieve a good treating effect. Moreover, this method may be very dangerous especially to a patient with hypertension.
Also, to those related in the art is a vertebral traction bed for correcting a patient""s spinal misalignment, which has a horizontal mat. In the traction bed, in state that a patient is lying on the bed, the patient""s spinal vertebrae including cervical vertebrae are drawn in the patient""s longitudinal direction, or moreover the patient""s upper and lower bodies are swayed in opposite directions while the cervical and spinal vertebrae are drawn, gaps between the spinal vertebrae are enlarged so that herniated spinal marrow is restored to its original position. However, in this traction bed, it is also difficult to maintain the patient""s physiological curvature. Moreover, since the spinal vertebrae are forcedly drawn, the paraspinal muscles are unnecessarily stressed, causing harmful effect, and the elongation of the spinal vertebrae shows an insignificant degree. Especially, in a case where the patient""s spinal vertebrae are drawn by means of a belt fastened around the patient""s jaw, the patient may get a ruptured cervical disk. Therefore, such a method has to be inhibited. Further, since the vertebral traction bed is too expensive, it is not used in general but is usually used in hospitals specialized in spinal treatment.
Accordingly, the present invention has been made in an effort to solve the problems occurring in the related art, and it is an object of the present invention to provide a chair for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae and a method for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae by means of the chair, which not only can be used easily and comfortably but also can be utilized in treating an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae of the user.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a chair for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae and a method for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae by means of the chair, by which a user can treat the improper alignment of spinal vertebrae by himself or herself with a simple operation without any additional apparatus.
It is another object of the present invention to provide a chair for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae and a method for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae by means of the chair, in which a user""s scapular muscles can be stimulated to be tenderized, so that the pain at the user""s cervical portion can be soothed, while the physiological curvature of the user""s scapular portion is maintained.
In accordance with one aspect, the present invention provides a chair for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae of a user of the chair, the chair comprising: a seat assembly for seating the user on the seat assembly, the seat assembly being operated by the user in such a manner as that the user can adjust a height of the seat assembly; a backrest assembly for supporting a back of the user, the backrest assembly being operated separately from the seat assembly by the user in such a manner that the user can adjust a height of the backrest assembly; a headrest assembly for resting a head of the user on the headrest assembly, the headrest assembly being assembled with the backrest assembly; and a backrest frame for supporting the backrest assembly and the headrest assembly, the backrest frame being fixed to the seat assembly, the backrest assembly moving along the backrest frame when the height of the backrest assembly is adjusted.
Preferably, the seat assembly may comprise supporting legs for generally supporting the seat assembly, a base cylinder integrated with and supported by the supporting legs, a seat-elevating rod movably inserted in the base cylinder, and a seat assembled with and supported by the seat-elevating rod, the seat-elevating rod being elevated by an actuating system housed in the base cylinder, which is operated by a driving handle.
Also, it is preferred that the backrest frame includes a horizontal lower section, a vertical upper section, and a curved elastic section interconnecting the horizontal lower section and the vertical upper section, which are integrated as a single elastic member, the horizontal lower section having one end fixed to the base cylinder.
Also, the backrest assembly includes a backrest and a backrest-elevating system for moving the backrest up and down along the vertical upper section of the backrest frame.
Moreover, the headrest assembly may include a headrest, a supporting plate, a carrier plate, a headrest frame, and a headrest frame holding bracket, the headrest frame holding bracket being fixed to a rear surface of the backrest, the headrest frame being held by and extends vertically upward from the headrest frame holding bracket, the supporting plate being fixed to an upper end of the headrest frame, and the carrier plate being disposed on the supporting plate and fixed to the headrest so as to carry the headrest the carrier plate being capable of sliding forward and backward on the supporting plate.
More preferably, the headrest has a head-resting wall, two neck-holding protrusions protruding forward from lower end portions of the head-resting wall, and a neck-seating portion formed between the two neck-holding protrusions. The neck-seating portion has such a width as to as to enable a lower portion of the user""s head to be caught by the two neck-holding protrusions when the head and a neck of the user have respectively been seated on the head-resting wall and the neck-seating portion.
In accordance with another aspect, the present invention provides a method for correcting an improper alignment of spinal vertebrae of a user of the chair, the chair including a seat assembly, a backrest assembly whose height can be adjusted separately from the seat assembly, a headrest assembly assembled with the backrest assembly, and a backrest frame for supporting the backrest assembly and the headrest assembly, the seat assembly including supporting legs for generally supporting the seat assembly, a base cylinder integrated with and supported by the supporting legs, a seat-elevating rod movably inserted in the base cylinder, and a seat assembled with and supported by the seat-elevating rod, the seat-elevating rod being elevated by an actuating system housed in the base cylinder, which is operated by a driving handle, the backrest frame being fixed to the seat assembly, the backrest assembly moving along the backrest frame when the height of the backrest assembly is adjusted, the backrest assembly having a backrest and a backrest-elevating system, the headrest assembly having a headrest, which includes a head-resting wall, two neck-holding protrusions protruding forward from lower end portions of the head-resting wall, and a neck-seating portion formed between the two neck-holding protrusions, the method comprising the steps of: (1) seating the user on the seat; (2) operating the handle and the backrest-elevating system to respectively adjust heights of the seat and the backrest assembly so that a back of the user comes into tight contact with the backrest of the backrest assembly; (3) inserting a neck of the user between the neck-holding protrusions, so that the head of the user is seated on the head-resting wall; and (4) operating the driving handle again to eliminate an upward pressure by the seat-elevating rod for supporting the seat.
Preferably, the method further comprises a step of adjusting a frontward location and an inclination of the headrest.
According to the present invention, the user can have a distinctive spinal groove representing a strong and healthy spine, which extends along the human spine and is formed on a human back by the human spine and the paraspinal muscles.